5 Things Not to Do At a Crime Scene

Earlier today, Gothamist posted a YouTube video in which a drunk-ish woman in Brooklyn leaves a bar, crosses into the scene of a murder, then says something loudly into her phone that could easily be construed as racist. Meanwhile, you can hear the two amateur filmmakers talking shit about her and what she said (because two guys filming some chick without her consent are people who should definitely be judging other people’s actions).

Both the filmer and the filmee have laid out some good basics for us about bad behavior at a crime scene — being racist (maybe), filming people without their knowledge, and wandering into the scene in the first place. To build on that, here are a few more things that decent civilians shouldn’t do when faced with police tape:

Make a joke about having a bomb.

Lean in and ask the police officers repeated questions about what happened.

Take a picture of yourself, standing in front of the tape and smiling.

Call your mother and loudly tell her about what you see, detailing with glee the minutiae of the crime.

Sit down and cry.

If we can all follow these simple rules, we’re on our way to a better, more humane society.